Captain Marvel Opposes O’Neill For England
Unsurprisingly Bryan Robson, failed manager of Middlesbrough and possible relegation candidate with West Brom this season, has come out in the press demanding that the crop of young Englsih managers be given a chance at replacing Sven when he leaves the England job.
Nothing like a bit of self-promotion from the former Manchester United captain but do his claims hold any water when the quality of the English managers is considered?
The only real runners are Steve McLaren, Alan Curbishley and Sam Allardyce and despite what Robbo may think, his name isn’t on the list. What a dent to your self-worth that must be to not make a list of the most average English managers of the last thirty years. No major trophies, minimal league success, no overtures from the big clubs to employ them and a serious lack of the very necessary element of football management at the highest level, public image.
Even ten years ago England had men with potential or experience at the top level like Terry Venables and Glenn Hoddle to lead them but these days I fear they’ll be left with a lame duck English manager who finds that trying to tell Steven Gerrard and Rio Ferdinand what to do on the pitch is a little different to instructing Chris Perry and Kevin Nolan.
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5 opinions for Captain Marvel Opposes O’Neill For England
Ian James
Apr 6, 2006 at 6:02 am
I can’t disagree. As a supporter of the club he’s currently taking on a downward spiral, I was embarrassed by his exclamations (as much as I’m embarrassed by the team’s ‘progress’ under his rotten managerial hold) and hope to whatever gods that exist that he is shunted off to the dole queue in the quickest possible time (I’m sceptical about religions, but ‘Robbo’ can force even the most ardent atheist to run screaming to church on a Sunday morning).
He’s heartbreaking in many respects, one of them being that some (if not many Albion fans) still think he’s of some worth and that we must ‘get behind him’ (it’s like a form of ‘la-la-laaa-I’m not listening’ when ‘Robbo’s’ methods are questioned). Others have only just come to the conclusion that he’s not very good – which, given the huge amount of evidence that’s accrued over the eighteen months in charge to prove it, brings to mind the phrase ‘about bloody time’ (or, alternatively, ‘where the bloody hell have you been?’). The other problem is whenever the call for Robson to go is heard, certain numpties go ‘well, who else is there?’ as if no other candidates exist in the world except Robson. They do – it’s just that you have to look a bit further. No one wants to think about that possibility.
Oh, by the way, you missed out his 28-game stint at Bradford, where he amassed 20 defeats. They were on financially hard times, for sure, but if you think you’re a managerial powerhouse whose only place is the top flight, you’d at least try and make that record presentable, wouldn’t you?
God, I hate him.
Alan
Apr 7, 2006 at 7:17 am
I’m sure there’s a few Bradford supporters who’d love to be able to forget about Robbo’s spell there as well with a record like that.
The man has shown no aptitude for football management whatsoever at any club he has managed and it was with great surprise that I saw he’d been given the West Brom job in the first place. The only greater surprise is that he’s still there.
Who would West Brom fans want to replace him though?
charltonfan
Apr 7, 2006 at 8:45 pm
I really hate the jingoism of this whole england manager thingy. Why in God’s world does the England manager have to be English. We simply do not have world class managers. Steve McLaren, and Sam Allardyce on the list! Just shows that we have no quality english managers in this country. Even worse they actually considered Stuart Pearce! You gotta love his rant when City lost to the Boro. Apparently he couldnt look his kiddie in the face!
I would love Gus Hidink to be the next England manager and he’s someone with a quality reputation.
By the way I intentionally left our beloved Curbishley off the list, coz he’s simply the best thing out there and would, with no shade of doubt lead our well payed bufoons to world cup victory. If we let him go we would have burnt down The Valley and rioted all over South London, while kicking the heads of the Millwall fans down the road.
ian james
Apr 8, 2006 at 3:59 am
That, as they say, is the $64,000 question. And each supporter has their own opinion on who should take up the reins when and if (please God, let it be ‘when’) the Useless One is shown the door.
I can’t say who should. I have no idea, no easy names to throw into the hat, but I do know that whoever comes in should, whether given substantial funds or moderate backing, at least demonstrate a sense of purpose and objective, and be shrewd enough to know how to quickly provide solutions to problems that crop up constantly. Managers who won’t even wait until a third of a season is over to say that everyone should expect a relegation fight - as Robson did last year - should go and find a course of employment more accommodating to their lack of backbone.
The thing is that there must be promising managers of untapped potential around the UK and the world itself. It’s a pain to see the same names crop up again (someone even suggested Howard Wilkinson the other week - I mean, really…) and that no-one will just broaden the horizons for a change.
Just two instances: Hands up those who looked upon Arsene Wenger as a household name prior to his introduction at Arsenal? Thought not. And though Tottenham Hotspur’s fingers were burned with the ineffective installation of Christian Gross some seasons ago, they have rebuilt most promisingly under Martin Jol, who, for some, was last heard of as a player who plied his trade in Britain in the Eighties…..for West Brom.
My point being is that if clubs can look to the corners of the Earth for players of untapped potential, then why not managers too?
Like I said, I don’t know who’ll sit in that manager’s chair at the Hawthorns when Robson takes his dull cloud of a reputation with him, but I hope that whoever comes in demonstrates a complete contrast to his unadventurous and ill-thought-out methods.
You should have heard the wave of indifference to Robson when his name was announced as manager of West Brom. It provided two questions: If he was the best, how long was that short list? And if he was the solution, what on earth was the question?
slatoy
Apr 9, 2006 at 12:16 pm
It is interesting that potentially the best England Manager, Trevor Brooking, doesn’t qualify for the positon because the more qualified managers i.e. Howard Wilkinson etc have banded together and said that no-one should be able to manage without a piece of paper that says he can rather than his inate ability.
You may not have heard about Wenger in your country but if you watch his record you would realise that you should have. Just as Morinho did not start the Year before he went to Chelsea. Coaches begin somewhere and at the end of the day it isn’t who you are but what you can do. All of the suggestions are Great but it would make more sense to look at all the players see what method they will best respond to then select. Taking a manager from any country means that they will apply their idea of a system and to be frank the results will be humorous if a manager is brought who doesn’t understand the English culture and style and tries to change that totally. The players may not respond and just increasingly bad results will ensue.
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